Movie Review #59: Armageddon (1998)

The biggest question that I have about this film isn't about all of the scientific inaccuracies. It's that I don't understand how a film nominated for so many 7 Razzies got inducted into the Criterion collection?! Two Michael Bay flicks yet not a single Spielberg film? What's up with that?!

In Armageddon, an asteroid the size of Texas is headed straight for earth and it is up to a team of skilled oil drillers to land on the asteroid, drill into the rock and detonate a nuclear weapon to blow it to bits and save the Earth. 

Armageddon is directed by Michael Bay and I am not a huge fan of his films because his films are like Roland Emmerich films. They are entertaining and visually well-crafted, but the biggest problem lies in the script. Don't get me wrong, I do like a few films by Bay and Emmerich. But the majority of them I could do without.

Yet to my surprise, Armageddon was actually a lot of fun! The all star cast works well with each other and it is very clear that they're having fun. What really surprised me was the considerable amount of emotion. You actually feel and fear for the characters and what they're going through. And the ending actually mad me the slightest bit emotional. I don't know if it was subject matter or Aerosmith's "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing" playing in the background, but that just hit me for some reason. The action was incredibly thrilling and intense. The action in this film is incredibly fast-paced, quickly edited and close up that really immerses the audience in the environment.

As I previously stated, the biggest problem with Michael Bay's films lies with the script. And that is true for Armageddon. It's pretty cheesy.The humor is exactly what I expected in a Bay film. A lot of the jokes come off as cheesy and lame, but there are definitely a few chuckles to be had. The funniest actor in the whole film was Steve Buscemi. Not only is Buscemi a terrific actor, but for some reason he is great when it comes to comedy. Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler's characters annoyed me. I understand the purpose they served in the film was to include a romantic subplot, but it was either cheesy, sappy or annoying. Sometimes all three at the same time.

Final Report: Armageddon is a cheesy, explosion and mayhem filled blockbuster with a surprising amount of intensity and emotion. This is a huge guilty pleasure of mine. I'm not entirely proud of that fact but I stand by what I said.